During the cold wet weather, we end up enjoying two incredible sightings in this Virtual Safari. We start off with a mother cheetah and her sub-adult cub as they spend a cold wet morning lounging about on a termite mound. A pesky hyena walks by but realises there is nothing to steal from the cheetah and carries on its way. The young cheetah then spends a while charging around burning off some pent up energy.
We then marvel at the strength of the Ximungwe Female as she drags a fully grown impala ram through a clearing to stash it under a bush. In case the impala wasn’t difficult enough to drag, she has the frustrations of her young male cub thinking it is a game and pouncing on the carcass and wrestling with it every time she tries to move it.
Enjoy this Virtual Safari…
A single cub of the Ximungwe Female's second litter. Initially rather skittish but is very relaxed now. Birth mark in his left eye.
Having been viewed by vehicles from an early age, this leopard is supremely relaxed around Land Rovers.
To view the YouTube link, click here.
How fortunate to be able to watch the interaction between the mother and cub right after a kill! A rare sight for sure.
We were so fortunate. It was amazing to see her strength as she dragged the carcass.
What amazing footage of the cheetah mother and her very playful cub, I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like that on the blog before – a real rarity even for you, I’m sure?
As you say, it must have been extremely frustrating for the Ximungwe female trying to drag that large impala while her son treated it as a plaything, especially now he’s as big as her. We were so fortunate in February to see them both on a kill, which she then hoisted in a tree! – that’s always been on our bucket list but never thought we’d actually see it happening just a few feet away. As she pulled it along a branch, the impala’s stomach fell out and plopped onto the grass right in front of her startled cub. We just couldn’t believe our eyes.
Thank you so much, Suzanne. It was a magnificent sighting of the two cheetahs. That must have been an amazing sighting to watch her hoist the impala into a tree, that for sure is a true demonstration of pure strength.
LOVED watching the cheetahs! It felt special to see all their interactions; from threat response, to play and touching…Thanks! 💗
Thank you so much, Marcia. I also really enjoyed just sitting there with the cheetah and watching the interaction between the two.
Thanks so much Sean for this fantastic virtual safari today. Watching the cheetah cub play, running sprints plus hiding, was like watching a small child – full of energy and testing boundaries. Mom seemed patient until the end….
I marveled at the strength of the Ximungwe female, especially her jaw, as she moved that impala ram across the clearing, with certainly no help from her son. It seems cubs are not taught about helping with a kill! Hopefully they both will be able to eat a good meal, rest up a bit and then place the the remaining carcass in a nearby tree. It’s always painful to learn that a female leopard especially, has managed to make a kill, only to have it stolen by another leopard, or worse, the hyenas. But, that’s the way it is in the wild.
Thank you so much, Denise. It is fascinating to see the strength of a leopard. They are incredible animals.
Amazing videos of the cheetahs and the leopards, thanks Sean!
Thank you so much, William. I was so lucky to be able to be there to witness both sightings and it is a huge privilege to share them with everyone.
Beautiful video Sean of the Cheetah mother and her playful cub, that’s not something we see everyday. She is a stunning cat and cub as well. Good to see the Ximungwe female and her male cub again. So playful and I think he was annoying her while she tried so hard to drag the huge impala. Both of then Beautiful.
Thank you so much, Valmai. Cheetahs are stunning animals and so it was amazing to spend some time with the two of them.
The elegance and frail beauty of cheetah and the sudden coming of a hyena makes me think of a story by Namibian native population, about why cheetah have the tears markings. They are a wonder and it must have been a joy to share their day. The same for the Ximungwe female and her strong, confident son. I am always sorry for impala, they are lovely creatures too, but so nature works and leopards are perfect killers, their prey die quickly in a “clean” way. Very relaxing and joyful video!
Thank you so much, Francesca. I am so glad you enjoyed this video.
Both parts of today’s video are amazing.
It’s beautiful to be able to see the relationship between cheetah mother and her cub; the youngster is so full of energy and she seems to be such a patient mother.
The same can be said about the leopard mum and her big son who is constantly interfering with her struggle to get the carcass to a safe place. What amazing sights you present in your photos and videos every day and every week. Very nice for the guests who are lucky enough to be able to watch this as well.
Thank you so much, Christa. We are so fortunate to be able to witness some magical moments in the wild.
The quickness of the cheetas is amazing. They get to full speed so rapidly.